Oakland City Councilmember District 4

Fearlessly fighting
for Oakland

Janani Ramachandran is the Oakland City Councilmember representing District 4. She is the youngest person elected to Oakland’s City Council, as well as the first South Asian and first LGBTQ woman of color to serve on Oakland City Council.

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The Mission for Oakland

Now more than ever, as Oaklanders are experiencing crises upon crises, we need bold solutions and leaders with the courage to fight them.

Janani’s fearlessness in fighting for Oakland starts with seven key policy principles:

  • Responsive Leadership. Oakland needs trustworthy and ethical leaders who will not just listen, but meaningfully respond to constituent concerns. As a former member of the Oakland Public Ethics Commission, Janani has seen firsthand how important transparency, community engagement, and well-functioning constituent services can foster good governance.
  • Public Safety. We must holistically prevent and interrupt violence in our communities. Oakland must have a fully staffed patrol, which will decrease police response times and save money by reducing overtime. Sworn officers must efficiently spend their time responding to emergencies, rather than conducting non-essential functions that can be better addressed by trained civilian staff through programs such as MACRO. We must also invest more resources in community policing and violence prevention programs that include economic opportunities for vulnerable youth.
  • Fire Safety. Fires impact all Oaklanders; we must not forget the legacy of the 1991 Firestorm or the more recent Ghost Ship tragedy. Oakland must implement a robust vegetation management plan, a wildfire prevention assessment district, and neighborhood preparedness programs that address the urgent danger of wildfires.
  • Clean Streets and Flourishing Parks. Clean streets and active green spaces are the bedrocks of community safety, mental health, and environmental sustainability. Oaklanders deserve access to roads free of potholes, and parks and streets free of illegal dumping. Our pedestrians and bikers deserve to travel the city free from fear of reckless drivers and unsafe roads.
  • Homelessness. It is clear that existing plans to address homelessness simply aren’t working, so we must examine why our city’s homelessness dollars are not being spent efficiently. Oakland must implement evidence-based solutions that include the production of safe tiny homes, pathways to permanent housing and comprehensive mental health and addiction services. Read more about Janani’s homelessness strategy in her recent article in the Oakland Post.
  • Affordable Housing. Oakland must do more to support the production of housing that is truly affordable for our communities. We are far below our state targets for building low-income housing, largely because of a glaring funding gaps. We must enact a comprehensive inclusionary zoning ordinance and re-structure impact fees for residential and commercial developments. We must build on publicly-owned land, and make Oakland more competitive in advocating for greater state and federal funds.
  • Thriving Small Businesses. Oakland must do more to support small businesses that have faced major hardships in the past few years. We must reduce needless bureaucracy, support entrepreneurship, ensure safe and clean residential corridors, and offer financial and technical assistance.

Join Fearless Janani in the Fight for Justice

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Meet Janani

Janani Ramachandran is a public interest attorney who has dedicated her life to empowering communities and fighting for responsive government institutions. Born and raised in the East Bay, Janani is the daughter of immigrants from small South Indian villages. She identifies as LGBTQ. Janani’s passion for justice was born at an early age. At 16, Janani founded a nonprofit that built libraries in under-resourced schools in her local community. She attended Stanford University, where she studied systems of democratic governance and economic development. Later, Janani worked as a home-visiting case manager at a community health clinic, serving pregnant mothers experiencing domestic violence and housing insecurity. Witnessing the injustices her clients faced at the hands of our inequitable legal system, she was driven to make a difference as a lawyer and attended Berkeley Law. 

 
Outside of her work at City Hall, Janani currently serves on the California Commission on Asian and Pacific Islander American Affairs. She previously served as a Commissioner at the City of Oakland Public Ethics Commission. Janani has worked as an attorney at local nonprofits, including Centro Legal de la Raza, representing immigrant workers in wage theft and discrimination cases in Oakland. Janani also worked as an attorney at Family Violence Appellate Project, another Oakland-based nonprofit, pursuing legal appeals and advocacy efforts to improve access to justice for all survivors of abuse. She has also served on the board of two violence prevention nonprofits in Oakland. Janani is an Associate Member of the Alameda County Democratic Central Committee and a member of the Oakland Rotary Club. She is also a lifelong performing artist.
 
In her campaign for Oakland City Council, Ramachandran gathered nearly 69% of the vote. She gained notable endorsements from the Alameda County Democratic Party, Oakland Firefighters Local 55, Planned Parenthood Advocates Mar Monte, environmental justice groups, labor unions, and a host of prominent local elected officials. The movement that she built began to disrupt business-as-usual politics – with over 1,000 volunteers and small-dollar donors – and she is excited to continue to shift the political narrative.
 
Janani knows that this movement will continue to grow and flourish. She is more energized than ever to focus on bringing much-needed change for Oakland. Janani is honored to represent Oakland’s District 4, and looks forward to building a safe, vibrant Oakland, and accountable City Hall.
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